Charles M. Blackwelder’s family found the small tin box in his Indian Land home after the World War II Marine veteran died last March.
It contained a photo of a Japanese soldier, two books printed in Japanese and a small journal. Each item was stamped “EXAMINED IN THE FIELD – PASSED BY JOINT INTELLIGENCE.”
The journal’s first seven pages were written in Japanese, but the next 13 were in English with the heading “Dear Diary.”

KERSHAW – Some military heroes coach youth ball teams, are church ushers and even bag groceries, with few outside their immediate families ever aware of their actions.
That’s especially true of Vietnam-era veterans who just don’t talk about their service, while their military records remain relatively unknown.
When it comes to talking about Vietnam, Robert Brasington was like many of his fellow servicemen.

There is a change underway in some hospitals around the country where, increasingly, the arts are used as an important healing tool.
At Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, patients receiving art, music or dance therapy have more than tripled since 2010. Nearly 10,000 patients received such treatment in 2014, according to the hospital.
Nicole Albers, a Children's Hospital art therapist, said it's amazing to work with patients and watch their pain disappear over the course of a therapy session.

If I told you the music of John Williams had a profound impact on not only my life, but yours as well, would you agree?
Probably not.
Instead you’d probably ask, “Who’s John Williams?”
Here’s a clue, and sing along with me if you can.
Remember that primal, two-note score from the movie “Jaws,” the one that goes “dunnn dun, dunnn dun, dunnn dun” and is usually followed with a late-night swimmer or inebriated teenager meeting their watery fate?

It was late on a Wednesday evening, about four months ago, when Janice Steele and her 43-year-old special-needs daughter Terri Ledbetter stopped in at Mane Street Hair Designers. Lisa Couch fixed Terri’s hair while owner Debbie Crenshaw worked with Janice.
As always, they joked around, laughed and danced. Debbie walked them out to their car. Sometime during the night, Terri, who loved music and was never seen without her Walkman, danced up the proverbial stairway to heaven.

“I’m just committed to living my life moment by moment according to the principles in God’s word.”
That simple but profound sentence, spoken by Lee Anne Genix at a Sunday school class in 1999, drew Ben Barry to his future wife. Freshly divorced, Ben was not looking for love that day but still felt drawn to her.

Ashley Lowrimore
For The Lancaster News
After a devastating accident, Frances and Cecil Clifton leaned on faith, family, friends, and each other to overcome an unimaginable prognosis.
On Tuesday, Nov. 25 1993, the couple, both newly-retired from Springs’ bleachery, stopped to visit at Frances’ mother’s house. While outside, Cecil climbed up a pecan tree so that he could shake pecans loose for the ladies to gather up from the ground.

A group of local quilters are looking to add to their ranks in a national grassroots community service effort to make quilts for active military and veterans as a thank you for their service.
The Piecemakers Quilting Guild meets the second Monday of each month at Heath Springs Baptist Church in Heath Springs and has made Quilts of Valor a service project for the last two years. Together, the ladies have made close to 100 quilts.